Dogs Dominate

I took the reins this past friday by shooting high school football for the paper by myself for the first time. I drove to Crestview to photograph a game between Crestview High (Bulldogs) and Baker (Gators). The game was as exciting for the fans to watch as it was for me to photograph. About halfway through the first quarter, Crestview scored three back-to-back touchdowns in response to a few bad plays by Baker. I was quietly laughing at myself for walking to the other side of the field after the kick off return from the Bulldogs because the plays resulted in a first down for the Bulldogs instead of a first down for the Gators. After the second touchdown, I began to expect big plays from Crestview and remained facing the direction they were driving in order to catch better photos. Aside from a small rain scare and flash malfunction, the night turned out pretty well. The first photo was published (as a vertical) and the rest are in the online gallery:











Thursday night marked the first time I shot volleyball at any level. I traveled with Nick to Navarre to photograph the high school's volleyball match against Fort Walton Beach. I was told that volleyball is one of the hardest sports to shoot, but I think that was intended toward college ball because the game wasn't too hard for me. I still have much to learn, but I enjoyed my first run at it. Here are three photos I took:







I headed to San Destin to photograph a 9-year-old child ambassador for the Art Miles Mural Program, which promotes peace through art. She has a heart to help others and has done so through the "Shoes for Hope" program by contributing her own money to pay for shoes, buying braclets from the Bracelet campaign to help raise awareness and create jobs for Uganda, and through a month-long trip to the Phillipines, China, Inda, Trinidad, and the Providence of Benguet where she talked with the children and their families. (Paraphrased from Daily News article). So as she was telling me and the writer her story, the girl shows us several of the mementos she received from the different countries she visited. I thought the best way to grab a portrait of this girl was to photograph her in the center of all of her keepsakes: